Arrangement for producing openings in sheet metal beams for attaching fixtures or the like

ABSTRACT

An arrangement for mounting fixtures or the like on two spaced sheet metal beams by which opposed openings are formed in the sidewalls of the beams to receive rods attached to the fixtures, with the rods then being bent at their ends to prevent movement relative to the beams, the openings being formed by a tool which includes opposed blades at the ends of rotational links, held by a support which includes a means for positioning it relative to the beam, while a scissors mechanism rotates the links to cause the blades to penetrate the sidewalls.

United States Patent 1 Marlar [111 3,815,235 5] June 11, 1974 ARRANGEMENT FOR PRODUCING OPENINGS IN SHEET METAL BEAMS FOR ATTACHING FIXTURES OR THE LIKE [76] Inventor: James Rush Marlar, 13317 Apex Rd, Banning, Calif. 92220 [22] Filed: July 10, 1972 [21] Appl. N0.:'269,996

[521 [1.8. CI. 30/363, 29/21 .1 [51] Int. Cl B261 1/36 [58] Field of Search.'...... 30/16, 287, 358, 359, 363,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,827,180 10/1931 Williams 30/363 2,012,027 8/1935 Taylor 227/108 2,182,594 12/1939 Matveyeff 227/108 3,505,714 4/1970 Boileau 30/363 'x 3,541,685 11/1970 Gizdich 30/363 Primary Examiner-Othell M. Simpson Assistant Examiner-J. C. Peters Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Richardl F. Carr [57] ABSTRACT An arrangement for mounting fixtures or the like on two spaced sheet metal beams by which opposed openings are formed in the sidewalls of the beams to receive rods attached to the fixtures, with the rods then being bent at their ends to prevent movement relative to the beams, the openings being formed by a tool which includes opposed blades at the ends of rotational links, heldby a support which includes a means for positioning it relative to the beam, while a scissors mechanism rotates the links to cause the blades to penetrate the sidewalls.

7 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJUH 11 m4 3815235 SHEET 2 0F 2 ARRANGEMENT FOR PRODUCING OPENINGS IN SHEET METAL BEAMS FOR ATTACIIING FIXTURES R TIIE LIKE BACKGROUND OF THE INvENTIoN l.- Field of the Invention This inventionpertains to an arrangement for attaching items to spaced metal beams.

2. Description of Prior Art 1 In building construction, there is increased use of metal lath'which provides advantages in cost and availability, also being fireproof and not subject to attack from. rotor. termites. Typically, metal hat-section beams are used in suspended ceilings to support various items, such as light fixtures, junction boxes, heaters and fans. The practice has been to secure such items to metal rods which are extended between adjacent beams. Wire is then wrapped around the rods and the beams to form an attachment. This is a laborious and time-consuming job, therefore being a significant cost item in building construction. It is awkward to work overhead in the ceiling area to wrap the wires in making the connections, and the fixture will not be properly supported unless the wire wrapping is correctly made. Even then, the fixture is not rigidly positioned because the rods can be slid relative to the wires, allowing the fixtureto shift position with respect to the beams. This frequently occurs as the construction is completed, such as during the installation of heating and ventilating ducts, plumbing or in plastering. This is particularly serious where a numberof light fixtures may become misaligned in a completed ceiling, which spoils the appearance of a corridor or room. I

SUMMARY oF IIE INvENTIoN The present invention provides a much simpler and faster way of attaching fixtures or other items to metal beams or the like, entirely, avoiding the useof wiring and assuring that the fixtures are held against subsequent movement. This is accomplished by a tool which provides opposed openings in the sidewalls of the channel beams of 'the. ceiling. Openings in adjacent beams are provided at; corresponding locations, permitting the supporting rods for the fixtures to beextended through the openings and beyond the beams. By passing through these openings, the rods are supported by the beams, which thereby hold the fixtures. The attachment iscompleted'merelyby bending the ends of the rods upwardly beyond the beams so that they are no longer free to sliderelative to the beams. Accordingly, in a few moments of time, a complete and permanent fixture installation is accomplished.

Thetool for forming the openings includes a duality of opposed V-shaped'blades which are at the upper ends of links pivotally mounted to support members. The blades are normal to the longitudinal axes of the links and can be positioned so that one is on either side of the sheetmetal beam. The support members are plates which include slots that receive pins extending from the upper ends of the links, which thereby limit the movement of the links, as well as helping to stabilize the upper ends adjacent the blades. Actuation of the links is accomplished by two levers which cross each other and arepivoted together in the manner of a scissors linkage. Relatively long handles are provided by these levers to result in a sizable mechanical advantage.

The tool also includes U-shaped brackets at the upper ends of the support, which complementarily engage the undersurface of the beam when the openings are to be formed. This correctlypositions the tool so that the openings will be made at the proper locations in the sidewalls of the beams when the blades are actuated. When the scissors levers are moved toward each other, thereby causing the blades to converge, the latter members are caused to penetrate the sidewalls of the beam, peeling back the material of the beam and forming arcuate slots dimensioned to receive the rods that support the fixtures. The blades are slightly hollow ground along their cutting edges, so that they make neat cuts without tearing the material, In the absence of hollow grinding for these edges, some tearing of the material of the beam may occur.

The tool is economically made and is a durable item easily used by the workman. It permits two opposed openings to be formed in the beam with only one stroke of the scissors mechanism. Thus, the openings are very rapidly formed and the fixtures can be attached to the ceiling structure in only a few moments of time.

' Various cuttingtools have been designed in'the past, but these have not been adapted for cutting'openings in the wallsof sheet metal beams, nor has any other means been used to provide such openings to permit fixtures to be mounted. Examples of prior'art tools are found in US. Pats. Nos. 1,910,839 and 3,335,494.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIQN OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the tool of this invention; 7

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the tool associatedwith a sheet metal beam in which openings are to be formed; h x a FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along line 33 of. FIG. 2; f j

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 after'the tool has been actuated to form the, openings in the beam;

FIG. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken along line 55 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line 66 of FIG. 4; t

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 77 of FIG. 6, showing how the edges of the blades are hollow ground;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view showing the type of openings formed in the workpiece by the tool;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the connection of the blade to the pivotal links which carry it; and v FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing how items are connected to beams which are prepared for use by the tool.

- DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED I EMBODIMENT The tool of this invention includes apair of levers l0 and I1 having handgrips l2 and 13 at their ends, as seen in FIGS. 1 and 2. The levers 10 and. 11 are connected together by a pin 14 adjacent their opposite ends, as shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, so that they resemble a scissors mechanism. Beyond the pin 14, the levers l0 and 11 are pivotally connected, through bolts 15 and 16 surrounded by sleeves 17 and 18, to two pairs of links 19 and 20 (see FIG. 3). The two links of each pair are laterally spaced apart, with the levers and 11 extending between them. The levers 10 and 11 connect to the upper ends of the links 19 and 20 as the device is illustrated.

The lower or opposite ends of the sets of links 19 and 20 are pivotally mounted on bolts 22 and 23, which extend through sleeves 24 and 25, between a pair of opposed plates 26. This supports the pairs of links 19 and 20 and allows them pivotal movement relative to the opposed plates 26 about the axes of the bolts 22 and The bolts and 16 at the upper ends of the links 19 and extend past these links and into slots 27 and 28, respectively, in the plates 26. The slots 27 and 28 are arcuate, with their centers of curvature being at the axes of the bolts 22 and 23, respectively. The slots 27 and 28 are of the same length and allow the links 19 and 20 to rotate through limited arcs. The presence of the bolts 15 and 16 in the slots 27 and 28 also helps stabilize the upper ends of the links.

A transverse member 30 interconnects the upper end portions of the pair of links 19, being welded to these links. A similar member 31 is welded to and extends between the upper ends of the other pair of pivotal links 20. Blades 32 and 33 are carried by the transverse members 30 and 31, respectively, being held in place by cover plates 34 and 35, through which extend screws 36 and 37.

The blades 32 and 33 are L-shaped in side elevation, having V-shaped upper portions 39 and 40, which are substantially at right angles to the parts which are held to the transverse members 30 and 31. This positions the upper parts 39 and 40 of the blades 32 and 33 so that they are spaced a short distance from the ends of the links 19 and 20, respectively, and are substantially in alignment with and normal to the longitudinal axes of these links. The side edges 42 and 43 of the V-shaped portions of the blades 32 and 33, which are the cutting edges of the blades, are hollow ground, as shown in FIG. 7. Not much concavity of the edges 42 and 43 is necessary, this being exaggerated in FIG. 7 for clarity, but each edge is given some curvature about an axis parallel toit.

The tool also includes a pair of U-shaped brackets 45 mounted along the upper edges of the side plates 26. Each element 45 has short, upwardly divergent end portions'46 and 47 which project beyond the plates 26. The intermediate parts 48 of the brackets 45 are horizontal when the tool is in a vertical attitude. The intersections of the end parts 46 and 47 with the intermediate sections 48 of the brackets are spaced slightly outside of the longitudinal axes of the links 19 and 20, respectively.

The tool of this invention is used to provide opposed openings in the sidewalls of metal beams, such as hatsection channels used as ceiling joists to which sheetrock is attached. This is accomplished, as shown in FIGS- 1 and 3 by first positioning the upper end of the tool adjacent the bottom wall 49 of a beam 50. The brackets 45 are dimensioned so that they then complementarily receive the bottom portion of the beams 50. The intermediate parts 48 of the brackets 45 engage the lower wall 49 of the beam 50, with the divergent end parts 46 and 47 of these brackets extending along the beam sidewalls 51 and 52. At this time, the scissors levers 10 and 11 are separated, positioning the links 19 and 20, and hence the blades 32 and 33, outwardly away from each other. The tool is proportiones so that the upper portions 39 and 40 of the blades then are adjacent the beam sidewalls 51 and 52, with their points just above the bottomwall 49 of the beam.

Next, the levers 10 and 11, held by the pipes 12 and 13, are moved inwardly, and the tool assumes the position of FIG. v4. This rotation of the levers 10 and 11 causes the pairs of links 19 and 20 to be rotated inwardly toward each other and with a substantial mechanical advantage. As this takes place, the V-shaped ends 39 and 40 of the blades 32 and 33 'are forced through the sidewalls 51 and 52 of the beam 50, forming elongated slots 54 and 55 in these walls just above the bottom wall 49. The brackets 45 hold the tool in place relative to the beam 50, so that the openings 54 and 55 are correctly positioned, and both blades 32 and 33 will penetrate the beam fully.

The bolts 22 and 23 for the pairs of links 19 and 20 are positioned generally beneath the intersections of the sidewalls 51 and 52 and the bottom wall 49 when the tool is associated with the beam 50. This, together with the relatively long dimensions of the links 19 and 20, means that the blades 32 and 33 are traveling substantially parallel to the bottom wall 49 of the beam 50 at the time of the penetration of the sidewalls 51 and 52. This enables the slots 54 and 55 to be formed very close to the bottom wall 49 of the beam.

When the openings 54 and 55 are produced. the sidewalls 51 and 52 are cut cleanly, providing curls of material 56 and 57 on either side of the openings 54 and 55, respectively. The effectiveness of the cutting is enhanced by the hollow ground side edges'42 and 43 of the V-shaped end portions 39 and 40. In the absence of the'hollow grinding of the cutting edges 42 and 43, there is some tendency toward bending the material of the sidewalls 51 and 52 when the openings 54 and 55 are formed.

After the openings 54 and 55 have been cut, the levers 10 and 11 again are opened up to remove the blades from the openings. The tool then is free of the beam 50.

In a typical installation made with the use of the tool of this invention, a light fixture 58 and junction box 59, mounted on a plate 60, are attached to adjacent parallel beams 50 which form the support for a suspended ceiling. On the undersurface of the plate 60, held by bent tabs 61 integral with the plate, are two parallel elongated flat bars 62. This assembly is secured between the two beams 50 by making two sets of opposed openings 54 and 55 in the sidewalls of each beam. these sets being spaced apart a distance corresponding to the spacing between the flat bars 62. The openings 54 and 55 in the two beams are in alignment. The bars 62, which are longer than the spacing between the two beams 50, then are fed through the openings 54 and 55 in one of the beams. The bars are extended through this beam a sufficient distance to allow their opposite ends to clear the other beam 50. Then, the bars are moved in the opposite direction and fed through the openings 54 and 55 in the second beam 50. They are finally positioned so that the opposite ends of the bars project beyond the two beams. These projecting ends then are bent upwardly, as shown in FlG. 10, which prevents further movement relative to the beams 50. This completes the installation of the fixture 58 and junction box 59. a

By permitting thefixture bars 62 to be attached to the beams 50 by being fed through openings in the sidewalls of the beams and then bent, the tool of this invention allows fixtures to be installed in far less time than required by conventional practices. Not only is the installation time reduced, but also maintenance of proper alignment of the fixtures can much better be assured. A flat ceiling is produced by eliminating the bulge normally formed on the finished ceiling by the thicknesses of the fixture bar and the wire that attaches it to the hat channel. Also, the fixtures are securely mounted on the beams and readily inspected to see that a proper attachment has been made.

The foregoing detailed description is to be clearly understood as given by way of illustration and example only, the spirit and scope of the invention being limited solely by the appended claims.

F I claim:

1. A device for cutting opposed openings in a sheet metal beam or the like comprising a duality of opposed blade means,

link means carrying each of said blade means,

support means,

means pivotally mounting each link means on said support means at a location remote from said blade means so as to allow said link means at the portions thereof carrying said blade means to move toward and away from each other in a fixed path, actuating means for causing said movement of said link means, j and workpiece-engageable means for positioning said support means relative to a workpiece during said movement of said link means toward each other for permitting said blade means to out such a workpiece in predetermined locations, said workpiece-engageable means including at least one substantially U-shaped member for engaging a similarly contoured sheet metal beam.

2. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said substantially U-shaped member includes side portions and an interconnecting portion, said pivot pins being intermediate and spaced from said side portions.

3. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said support means includes a duality of opposed plates,

said means pivotally mounting said link means to said support means including a pivot pin for each of said link means extending between said opposed plates.

4. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said blade means include cutting portions substantially normal to the longitudinal axes of said link means.

5. A device for cutting. opposed openings in a sheet metal beam or the like comprising a duality of opposed blade means,

link means carrying each of said blade means, support means, 1 means pivotally mounting each link means on said support means at a location remote from said blade 5 means so as to allow said link means at the'portions thereof carrying said blade means to move toward and away from each other in a fixed path, actuating means for causing said movement of said link means, i

said actuating means including a duality of levers, one of said levers being connected to one of said link means adjacent said blade means thereof, the other of said levers being connected to the other of said link means adjacent said blade means thereof, said levers crossing over eachother intermediate said link means, i said crossed-over portions of said levers being pivotally interconnected, said levers having distal end. portions manually movable for thereby causing said pivotal movement of said link means, and workpiece'engageable means for positioning said support means relative to a workpiece during said movement of said link means toward each other for permitting said blade means to cut such a workpiece in predetermined locations.

6. A device as recited in claim'5 in which each of said link means includes a pair of spaced parallel'links, said levers extending between said parallel links of each of said link means. it

7. A cutting tool comprising a support,

a duality of opposed blades,

each of said blades including a substantially V- shaped cutting member, the apexes of said V-shaped cutting members being in adjacency, each of said V-shaped cutting members including side edges, said side edges being arcuate and concave, means for causing said blades to move in fixed paths toward and away from each other relative to said support,

means for limiting said movement of said blades toward and away from each other,

and means for positioning said support in a fixed location relative to a workpiece during said movement,

whereby said blades can cut said workpiece, said positioning means including spaced opposed abutments for engaging outer surfaces of a workpiece, and an intermediate abutment for engaging an intermediate surface of a workpiecefor thereby positioning said support during said movement of said blades. 

1. A device for cutting opposed openings in a sheet metal beam or the like comprising a duality of opposed blade means, link means carrying each of said blade means, support means, means pivotally mounting each link means on said support means at a location remote from said blade means so as to allow said link means at the portions thereof carrying said blade means to move toward and away from each other in a fixed path, actuating means for causing said movement of said link means, and workpiece-engageable means for positioning said support means relative to a workpiece during said movement of said link means toward each other for permitting said blade means to cut such a workpiece in predetermined locations, said workpiece-engageable means including at least one substantially U-shaped member for engaging a similarly contoured sheet metal beam.
 2. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said substantially U-shaped member includes side portions and an interconnecting portion, said pivot pins being intermediate and spaced from said side portions.
 3. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said support means includes a duality of opposed plates, said means pivotally mounting said link means to said support means including a pivot pin for each of said link means extending between said opposed plates.
 4. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said blade means include cutting portions substantially normal to the longitudinal axes of said link means.
 5. A device for cutting opposed openings in a sheet metal beam or the like comprising a duality of opposed blade means, link means carrying each of said blade means, support means, means pivotally mounting each link means on said support means at a location remote from said blade means so as to allow said link means at the portions thereof carrying said blade means to move toward and away from each other in a fixed path, actuating means for causing said movement of said link means, said actuating means including a duality of levers, one of said levers being connected to one of said link means adjacent said blade means thereof, the other of said levers being connected to the other of said link means adjacent said blade means thereof, said levers crossing over each other intermediate said link means, said crossed-over portions of said levers being pivotally interconnected, said levers having distal end portions manually movable for thereby causing said pivotal movement of said link means, and workpiece-engageable means for positioning said support means relative to a workpiece during said movement of said link means toward each other for permitting said blade means to cut such a workpiece in predetermined locations.
 6. A device as recited in claim 5 in which each of said link means includes a pair of spaced parallel links, said levers extending between said parallel links of each of said link means.
 7. A cutting tool comprising a support, a duality of opposed blades, each of said blades including a substantially V-shaped cutting member, the apexes of said V-shaped cutting members being in adjacency, each of said V-shaped cutting members including side edges, said side edges being arcuate and concave, means for causing said blades to move in fixed paths toward and away from each other relative to said support, means for limiting said movement of said blades toward and away from each other, and means for positioning said support in a fixed location relative to a workpiece during said movement, whereby said blades can cut said workpiece, said positioning means including spaced opposed abutments for engaging outer surfaces of a workpiece, and an intermediate abutment for engaging an intermediate surface of a workpiece for thereby positioning said support during said movement of said blades. 